Sad Wind From the Sea - Jack Higgins [62]
'It's going to be dangerous, lad,' O'Hara said. 'Those divils are bound to be waiting at the mouth of the Kwai.'
Hagen nodded. 'Sure they will, but we haven't got any choice. Our rendezvous is in three and a half hours. The only way we'll make it is by leaving this place the easy way.'
Rose sat down opposite him, a mug of coffee in her hands. 'Do you really think we can get away with it?' she said. Her voice was grave and steady and there was no hope in it.
He looked up and smiled. 'I think there's a chance. We'll have to play hide-and-seek in the mist, but remember - we've only got Kossoff to deal with, not the Chinese Navy. We know that now.'
She smiled and there was a surprising note of sadness in her voice as she said: 'You never give in, do you? What a man you could have been.'
For a moment their eyes locked and Hagen said sadly, 'We aren't always responsible for the way things work out.' She dropped her eyes and he lit a cigarette and said, 'I'm only asking for one more miracle and then I think we really do stand a chance.'
Suddenly there was a tapping on the roof overhead and Rose looked up in alarm, and then the tapping increased until a thousand fingers danced on the roof. Hagen got to his feet and ran quickly through the cabin and went on deck. He stood with his face upturned into the heavy rain and the girl stood beside him. He turned and laughed wildly down into her face. 'Well, there you are,' he said, 'the other miracle. Now I know we're going to get away with it.'
12
Hagen spent another half-hour with his charts, carefully calculating the route from the lagoon to the main channel of the Kwai. He decided to begin the journey at three forty-five. That would get them to the mouth of the Kwai in good time for the rendezvous, and the necessary speed would be so slow that the engines would hardly be audible in the heavy rain. O'Hara came to him in the wheelhouse, sober and contrite. He was full of apologies and Hagen cut him off short. 'All right. So you didn't mean any harm. Well for Christ's sake remember that we're facing the trickiest part of the whole deal during the next three hours. If you make a slip I swear I'll drop you over the side and you can swim back.'
'You can trust me, lad,' O'Hara said, drawing himself up straight. 'I've never let you down at the crucial moment yet.'
Hagen laughed cynically. 'Not bloody much. Get down to the engine-room and make sure everything's perfect. You've got half an hour.'
He carefully re-checked his calculations and grunted with satisfaction. There was a chance. A damned good chance. He went below to the galley and found Rose clearing the place up. 'Is that necessary?' he said.
She wiped a plate and shrugged. 'It gives me something to do.'
He pushed a cigarette between his lips. 'I think we stand a chance. I really do.'
She showed no enthusiasm. 'I see.'
He smoked silently for a moment, watching her as she worked, and finally said, 'You don't seem very pleased.'
'Should I be? After all, what will success mean to me?'
'Oh, for God's sake,' Hagen said. 'Nobody is trying to cheat you out of everything. If you have your own way you'll give everything to some crack-pot relief organization. If you play it my way you'll get a nice slice for yourself.' There was pity on her face and he turned away and said angrily, 'After all we've been through we deserve every damned penny of it.'
For a moment there was silence and then she moved behind him and put a hand on his arm. 'Can't you understand, Mark? It was a trust. My father died for it. I can't let him down.'
He shook his head in bewilderment. 'But you can't play the game that way, angel. Life isn't like that.'
She smiled sadly into his face. 'Then I'd rather not play at all.' She turned away and leaned on the table. When she spoke her voice was strong and hard, admitting no weakness. 'I'd rather see the gold back at the bottom of the sea than have it used for the wrong purpose.'